What are the practical advantages of questionnaires?
- quick and cheap for gathering large amounts of data
- no need to train or recruit researchers (they don’t get involved)
- Data is easy to quantify as it consists of close ended and short open ended questions
What are the ethical advantages of questionnaires?
- questionnaires get informed consent
- no physical harm to individual
- no deception
- ‘prefer not to say’ is an option so individuals have a right to not disclose info they don’t want to
What are the theoretical advantages of questionnaires? (positivists)
Positivists favour
- reliable - as same questions can be asked
and no researcher present to influence answers given
- representative (large class, cross section of society) meaning generalisation can be made
- useful for testing cause and effect relationships between different variables
- detached and objective method - they value freedom (minimum contact between sociologist and individual)
What are the practical disadvantages of questionnaires?
- costly - expensive - prints, stamps
- low response rate (use example of Shere Hite) unsure if the respondent has received the questionnaire/ filled it out themselves - not reliable
- questions can’t be changed/ ask follow up questions
If questionnaires use complex language and gets a low response rate, how will this affect representativeness?
- we aren’t going to get a response from people who can’t read or they may respond incorrectly. This makes it less representative as it doesn’t include a majority of society. Useless if needed for material deprivation as it rises a vital part of society.
Who is likely to return a questionnaire and who is not?
- The ones strongly opinionated/ passionate and those who have lots of free time, are likely to fill it out
- Whereas, those who oppose school or don’t care or are busy won’t fill it out
We are often asked to return questionaires through magazine, email, radio or television. Why could this cause problems with representativeness?
- Those who don’t have online access won’t be able to fill it out, therefore missing out that particular group of society
- You may also have similar minded people, especially if they interact with the same programmes and magazines
What are the ethical disadvantages of using questionnaires?
- cause distress if on sensitive questions
- filling out questionnaires in front of people may cause psychological harm
What are the theoretical disadvantages of questionnaires?
Interpretivists dislike
- lacks validity - give a snapshot and do not capture people’s attitudes and behaviour change
- lacks verstehen - no rapport - lacks objectivity - they don’t allow you to observe and ask follow up questions or clarify meanings
What examples of studies can be used for questionnaires?
- Bowles and Gintis (correspondence principle)
- Shere Hite (4.5% response rate)
- Schofield (Virgin - ‘no not yet’)
- Connor and Dawson (research into working class pupils staying in local unis)
What was Connor and Dewson’s study using questionaires?
- sent 4000 questionnaires to students in higher education
- studied factors influencing the decisions of the working class choosing universities
How many questionaires did Connor and dewson send out?
4000 to students in high education
What was Bowles and Gintis’ study using questionaires?
- sent 237 questionaires to students
- compared how school mirrors the workplace
How man questionaries did Bowles and Gintis send out?
237
What was Shere Hite’s study using questionaires?
- she sent out 1000 questionaires
- asked women about sexual health
- received a response rate of 4.5%
- because the questions were too sensitive
how many questionaires did Shere hire send out?
1000
